In final game at AT&T Park, Cal football can lock up bowl game eligibility

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Cal receiver Keenan Allen has 75 catches for 1,074 yards this season, and will look for more Saturday.(Getty Images file photo)

Cal receiver Keenan Allen has 75 catches for 1,074 yards this season, and will look for more Saturday.(Getty Images file photo)

Cal has not defeated Oregon State since 2006, but the Bears enter senior day at AT&T Park riding high after a convincing bounce-back win against Washington State last week.

“They’ve been a thorn in our side for years,” Cal coach Jeff Tedford said. “Our players understand they haven’t had success against Oregon State.”

The Beavers (2-7, 2-4 Pac-12 North) have won the past four meetings between the teams, including last year’s 35-7 win in Corvallis, Ore., and have won 10 of the past 12.

“Each year is a new year. I don’t think you can put that much stock in the past,” Oregon State coach Mike Riley said. “It becomes a brand new game.”

Part of that new game is Beavers quarterback Sean Mannion.

A Pleasanton native, Mannion is coming off one of his better performances with 252 yards and a touchdown against Stanford last week.

“For two and a half quarters, they played Stanford tough,” Tedford said.

Riley is hoping his offensive line can give Mannion time to run the offense against Cal’s defense, which is ranked second in the Pac-12.

“Those pass defense statistics have to do with pressure,” Riley said of Cal’s defense. “Can we protect him long enough for him to throw?”

Mannion has thrown for more than 2,400 yards and 11 touchdowns in his freshman season.

Cal is first in passing defense, only allowing 194 yards per game.

The Bears (5-4, 2-4 Pac-12 North) have not won consecutive games since their three-game winning streak to open the season. They are also only one win away from becoming bowl eligible for the eighth time in the past nine seasons.

It will be Marvin Jones’ final home game for Cal. The senior ranks 10th in school history with 2,053 receiving yards and eighth in touchdowns with 13.